REPORTING POTENTIAL VIRTUAL ANCHOR LOCATIONS FOR IMPROVED POSITIONING
Disclosed are techniques for wireless positioning. In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) determines a positioning measurement of a first multipath component of a radio frequency (RF) signal transmitted by a transmission-reception point (TRP), determines a first additional positioning measurement of a second multipath component of the RF signal, determines a second additional positioning measurement of a third multipath component of the RF signal, and transmits a measurement report to a location server, the measurement report including at least the positioning measurement, the first additional positioning measurement, the second additional positioning measurement, and one or more parameters associated with the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement.
Aspects of the disclosure relate generally to wireless communications.
2. Description of the Related ArtWireless communication systems have developed through various generations, including a first-generation analog wireless phone service (1G), a second-generation (2G) digital wireless phone service (including interim 2.5G and 2.75G networks), a third-generation (3G) high speed data, Internet-capable wireless service and a fourth-generation (4G) service (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE) or WiMax). There are presently many different types of wireless communication systems in use, including cellular and personal communications service (PCS) systems. Examples of known cellular systems include the cellular analog advanced mobile phone system (AMPS), and digital cellular systems based on code division multiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), the Global System for Mobile communications (GSM), etc.
A fifth generation (5G) wireless standard, referred to as New Radio (NR), calls for higher data transfer speeds, greater numbers of connections, and better coverage, among other improvements. The 5G standard, according to the Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance, is designed to provide data rates of several tens of megabits per second to each of tens of thousands of users, with 1 gigabit per second to tens of workers on an office floor. Several hundreds of thousands of simultaneous connections should be supported in order to support large sensor deployments. Consequently, the spectral efficiency of 5G mobile communications should be significantly enhanced compared to the current 4G standard. Furthermore, signaling efficiencies should be enhanced and latency should be substantially reduced compared to current standards.
SUMMARYThe following presents a simplified summary relating to one or more aspects disclosed herein. Thus, the following summary should not be considered an extensive overview relating to all contemplated aspects, nor should the following summary be considered to identify key or critical elements relating to all contemplated aspects or to delineate the scope associated with any particular aspect. Accordingly, the following summary has the sole purpose to present certain concepts relating to one or more aspects relating to the mechanisms disclosed herein in a simplified form to precede the detailed description presented below.
In an aspect, a method of wireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE) includes determining a positioning measurement of a first multipath component of a radio frequency (RF) signal transmitted by a transmission-reception point (TRP); determining a first additional positioning measurement of a second multipath component of the RF signal; determining a second additional positioning measurement of a third multipath component of the RF signal; and transmitting a measurement report to a location server, the measurement report including at least the positioning measurement, the first additional positioning measurement, the second additional positioning measurement, and one or more parameters associated with the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement.
In an aspect, a method of wireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE) includes determining an estimated location of a virtual transmission-reception point (TRP) associated with a physical TRP based, at least in part, on one or more times of flight (ToFs) of one or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the physical TRP; and transmitting, to a positioning entity, the estimated location of the virtual TRP.
In an aspect, a method of wireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE) includes receiving assistance data for a positioning session from a positioning entity, the assistance data including a location of at least one physical transmission-reception point (TRP) and a location of at least one virtual TRP associated with the at least one physical TRP, wherein the at least one virtual TRP appears to transmit one or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the at least one physical TRP; and estimating a location of the UE based, at least in part, on the location of the physical TRP, the location of the virtual TRP, measurements of one or more line-of-sight (LOS) multipath components of the one or more RF signals, and the one or more NLOS multipath components of the one or more RF signals.
In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor configured to: determine a positioning measurement of a first multipath component of a radio frequency (RF) signal transmitted by a transmission-reception point (TRP); determine a first additional positioning measurement of a second multipath component of the RF signal; determine a second additional positioning measurement of a third multipath component of the RF signal; and transmit, via the at least one transceiver, a measurement report to a location server, the measurement report including at least the positioning measurement, the first additional positioning measurement, the second additional positioning measurement, and one or more parameters associated with the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement.
In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor configured to: determine an estimated location of a virtual transmission-reception point (TRP) associated with a physical TRP based, at least in part, on one or more times of flight (ToFs) of one or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the physical TRP; and transmit, via the at least one transceiver, to a positioning entity, the estimated location of the virtual TRP.
In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor configured to: receive, via the at least one transceiver, assistance data for a positioning session from a positioning entity, the assistance data including a location of at least one physical transmission-reception point (TRP) and a location of at least one virtual TRP associated with the at least one physical TRP, wherein the at least one virtual TRP appears to transmit one or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the at least one physical TRP; and estimate a location of the UE based, at least in part, on the location of the physical TRP, the location of the virtual TRP, measurements of one or more line-of-sight (LOS) multipath components of the one or more RF signals, and the one or more NLOS multipath components of the one or more RF signals.
In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes means for determining a positioning measurement of a first multipath component of a radio frequency (RF) signal transmitted by a transmission-reception point (TRP); means for determining a first additional positioning measurement of a second multipath component of the RF signal; means for determining a second additional positioning measurement of a third multipath component of the RF signal; and means for transmitting a measurement report to a location server, the measurement report including at least the positioning measurement, the first additional positioning measurement, the second additional positioning measurement, and one or more parameters associated with the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement.
In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes means for determining an estimated location of a virtual transmission-reception point (TRP) associated with a physical TRP based, at least in part, on one or more times of flight (ToFs) of one or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the physical TRP; and means for transmitting, to a positioning entity, the estimated location of the virtual TRP.
In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes means for receiving assistance data for a positioning session from a positioning entity, the assistance data including a location of at least one physical transmission-reception point (TRP) and a location of at least one virtual TRP associated with the at least one physical TRP, wherein the at least one virtual TRP appears to transmit one or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the at least one physical TRP; and means for estimating a location of the UE based, at least in part, on the location of the physical TRP, the location of the virtual TRP, measurements of one or more line-of-sight (LOS) multipath components of the one or more RF signals, and the one or more NLOS multipath components of the one or more RF signals.
In an aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium stores computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment (UE), cause the UE to: determine a positioning measurement of a first multipath component of a radio frequency (RF) signal transmitted by a transmission-reception point (TRP); determine a first additional positioning measurement of a second multipath component of the RF signal; determine a second additional positioning measurement of a third multipath component of the RF signal; and transmit a measurement report to a location server, the measurement report including at least the positioning measurement, the first additional positioning measurement, the second additional positioning measurement, and one or more parameters associated with the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement.
In an aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium stores computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment (UE), cause the UE to: determine an estimated location of a virtual transmission-reception point (TRP) associated with a physical TRP based, at least in part, on one or more times of flight (ToFs) of one or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the physical TRP; and transmit, to a positioning entity, the estimated location of the virtual TRP.
In an aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium stores computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment (UE), cause the UE to: receive assistance data for a positioning session from a positioning entity, the assistance data including a location of at least one physical transmission-reception point (TRP) and a location of at least one virtual TRP associated with the at least one physical TRP, wherein the at least one virtual TRP appears to transmit one or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the at least one physical TRP; and estimate a location of the UE based, at least in part, on the location of the physical TRP, the location of the virtual TRP, measurements of one or more line-of-sight (LOS) multipath components of the one or more RF signals, and the one or more NLOS multipath components of the one or more RF signals.
Other objects and advantages associated with the aspects disclosed herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art based on the accompanying drawings and detailed description.
The accompanying drawings are presented to aid in the description of various aspects of the disclosure and are provided solely for illustration of the aspects and not limitation thereof.
Aspects of the disclosure are provided in the following description and related drawings directed to various examples provided for illustration purposes. Alternate aspects may be devised without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Additionally, well-known elements of the disclosure will not be described in detail or will be omitted so as not to obscure the relevant details of the disclosure.
The words “exemplary” and/or “example” are used herein to mean “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any aspect described herein as “exemplary” and/or “example” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects. Likewise, the term “aspects of the disclosure” does not require that all aspects of the disclosure include the discussed feature, advantage or mode of operation.
Those of skill in the art will appreciate that the information and signals described below may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced throughout the description below may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof, depending in part on the particular application, in part on the desired design, in part on the corresponding technology, etc.
Further, many aspects are described in terms of sequences of actions to be performed by, for example, elements of a computing device. It will be recognized that various actions described herein can be performed by specific circuits (e.g., application specific integrated circuits (ASICs)), by program instructions being executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of both. Additionally, the sequence(s) of actions described herein can be considered to be embodied entirely within any form of non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored therein a corresponding set of computer instructions that, upon execution, would cause or instruct an associated processor of a device to perform the functionality described herein. Thus, the various aspects of the disclosure may be embodied in a number of different forms, all of which have been contemplated to be within the scope of the claimed subject matter. In addition, for each of the aspects described herein, the corresponding form of any such aspects may be described herein as, for example, “logic configured to” perform the described action.
As used herein, the terms “user equipment” (UE) and “base station” are not intended to be specific or otherwise limited to any particular radio access technology (RAT), unless otherwise noted. In general, a UE may be any wireless communication device (e.g., a mobile phone, router, tablet computer, laptop computer, consumer asset locating device, wearable (e.g., smartwatch, glasses, augmented reality (AR)/virtual reality (VR) headset, etc.), vehicle (e.g., automobile, motorcycle, bicycle, etc.), Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc.) used by a user to communicate over a wireless communications network. A UE may be mobile or may (e.g., at certain times) be stationary, and may communicate with a radio access network (RAN). As used herein, the term “UE” may be referred to interchangeably as an “access terminal” or “AT,” a “client device,” a “wireless device,” a “subscriber device,” a “subscriber terminal,” a “subscriber station,” a “user terminal” or “UT,” a “mobile device,” a “mobile terminal,” a “mobile station,” or variations thereof. Generally, UEs can communicate with a core network via a RAN, and through the core network the UEs can be connected with external networks such as the Internet and with other UEs. Of course, other mechanisms of connecting to the core network and/or the Internet are also possible for the UEs, such as over wired access networks, wireless local area network (WLAN) networks (e.g., based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 specification, etc.) and so on.
A base station may operate according to one of several RATs in communication with UEs depending on the network in which it is deployed, and may be alternatively referred to as an access point (AP), a network node, a NodeB, an evolved NodeB (eNB), a next generation eNB (ng-eNB), a New Radio (NR) Node B (also referred to as a gNB or gNodeB), etc. A base station may be used primarily to support wireless access by UEs, including supporting data, voice, and/or signaling connections for the supported UEs. In some systems a base station may provide purely edge node signaling functions while in other systems it may provide additional control and/or network management functions. A communication link through which UEs can send signals to a base station is called an uplink (UL) channel (e.g., a reverse traffic channel, a reverse control channel, an access channel, etc.). A communication link through which the base station can send signals to UEs is called a downlink (DL) or forward link channel (e.g., a paging channel, a control channel, a broadcast channel, a forward traffic channel, etc.). As used herein the term traffic channel (TCH) can refer to either an uplink/reverse or downlink/forward traffic channel.
The term “base station” may refer to a single physical transmission-reception point (TRP) or to multiple physical TRPs that may or may not be co-located. For example, where the term “base station” refers to a single physical TRP, the physical TRP may be an antenna of the base station corresponding to a cell (or several cell sectors) of the base station. Where the term “base station” refers to multiple co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRPs may be an array of antennas (e.g., as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system or where the base station employs beamforming) of the base station. Where the term “base station” refers to multiple non-co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRPs may be a distributed antenna system (DAS) (a network of spatially separated antennas connected to a common source via a transport medium) or a remote radio head (RRH) (a remote base station connected to a serving base station). Alternatively, the non-co-located physical TRPs may be the serving base station receiving the measurement report from the UE and a neighbor base station whose reference radio frequency (RF) signals the UE is measuring. Because a TRP is the point from which a base station transmits and receives wireless signals, as used herein, references to transmission from or reception at a base station are to be understood as referring to a particular TRP of the base station.
In some implementations that support positioning of UEs, a base station may not support wireless access by UEs (e.g., may not support data, voice, and/or signaling connections for UEs), but may instead transmit reference signals to UEs to be measured by the UEs, and/or may receive and measure signals transmitted by the UEs. Such a base station may be referred to as a positioning beacon (e.g., when transmitting signals to UEs) and/or as a location measurement unit (e.g., when receiving and measuring signals from UEs).
An “RF signal” comprises an electromagnetic wave (or waveform) of a given frequency that transports information through the space between a transmitter and a receiver. As used herein, a transmitter may transmit a single “RF signal” or multiple “RF signals” to a receiver. However, the receiver may receive multiple “RF signals” corresponding to each transmitted RF signal due to the propagation characteristics of RF signals through multipath channels. The same transmitted RF signal on different paths between the transmitter and receiver may be referred to as a “multipath” RF signal. As used herein, an RF signal may also be referred to as a “wireless signal” or simply a “signal” where it is clear from the context that the term “signal” refers to a wireless signal or an RF signal.
The base stations 102 may collectively form a RAN and interface with a core network 170 (e.g., an evolved packet core (EPC) or a 5G core (5GC)) through backhaul links 122, and through the core network 170 to one or more location servers 172 (e.g., a location management function (LMF) or a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform (SLP)). The location server(s) 172 may be part of core network 170 or may be external to core network 170. In addition to other functions, the base stations 102 may perform functions that relate to one or more of transferring user data, radio channel ciphering and deciphering, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection setup and release, load balancing, distribution for non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, RAN sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS), subscriber and equipment trace, RAN information management (RIM), paging, positioning, and delivery of warning messages. The base stations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., through the EPC/5GC) over backhaul links 134, which may be wired or wireless.
The base stations 102 may wirelessly communicate with the UEs 104. Each of the base stations 102 may provide communication coverage for a respective geographic coverage area 110. In an aspect, one or more cells may be supported by a base station 102 in each geographic coverage area 110. A “cell” is a logical communication entity used for communication with a base station (e.g., over some frequency resource, referred to as a carrier frequency, component carrier, carrier, band, or the like), and may be associated with an identifier (e.g., a physical cell identifier (PCI), an enhanced cell identifier (ECI), a virtual cell identifier (VCI), a cell global identifier (CGI), etc.) for distinguishing cells operating via the same or a different carrier frequency. In some cases, different cells may be configured according to different protocol types (e.g., machine-type communication (MTC), narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or others) that may provide access for different types of UEs. Because a cell is supported by a specific base station, the term “cell” may refer to either or both of the logical communication entity and the base station that supports it, depending on the context. In addition, because a TRP is typically the physical transmission point of a cell, the terms “cell” and “TRP” may be used interchangeably. In some cases, the term “cell” may also refer to a geographic coverage area of a base station (e.g., a sector), insofar as a carrier frequency can be detected and used for communication within some portion of geographic coverage areas 110.
While neighboring macro cell base station 102 geographic coverage areas 110 may partially overlap (e.g., in a handover region), some of the geographic coverage areas 110 may be substantially overlapped by a larger geographic coverage area 110. For example, a small cell base station 102′ (labeled “SC” for “small cell”) may have a geographic coverage area 110′ that substantially overlaps with the geographic coverage area 110 of one or more macro cell base stations 102. A network that includes both small cell and macro cell base stations may be known as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also include home eNBs (HeNBs), which may provide service to a restricted group known as a closed subscriber group (CSG).
The communication links 120 between the base stations 102 and the UEs 104 may include uplink (also referred to as reverse link) transmissions from a UE 104 to a base station 102 and/or downlink (DL) (also referred to as forward link) transmissions from a base station 102 to a UE 104. The communication links 120 may use MIMO antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and/or transmit diversity. The communication links 120 may be through one or more carrier frequencies. Allocation of carriers may be asymmetric with respect to downlink and uplink (e.g., more or less carriers may be allocated for downlink than for uplink).
The wireless communications system 100 may further include a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) 150 in communication with WLAN stations (STAs) 152 via communication links 154 in an unlicensed frequency spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz). When communicating in an unlicensed frequency spectrum, the WLAN STAs 152 and/or the WLAN AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) or listen before talk (LBT) procedure prior to communicating in order to determine whether the channel is available.
The small cell base station 102′ may operate in a licensed and/or an unlicensed frequency spectrum. When operating in an unlicensed frequency spectrum, the small cell base station 102′ may employ LTE or NR technology and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed frequency spectrum as used by the WLAN AP 150. The small cell base station 102′, employing LTE/5G in an unlicensed frequency spectrum, may boost coverage to and/or increase capacity of the access network. NR in unlicensed spectrum may be referred to as NR-U. LTE in an unlicensed spectrum may be referred to as LTE-U, licensed assisted access (LAA), or MulteFire.
The wireless communications system 100 may further include a millimeter wave (mmW) base station 180 that may operate in mmW frequencies and/or near mmW frequencies in communication with a UE 182. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is part of the RF in the electromagnetic spectrum. EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz and a wavelength between 1 millimeter and 10 millimeters. Radio waves in this band may be referred to as a millimeter wave. Near mmW may extend down to a frequency of 3 GHz with a wavelength of 100 millimeters. The super high frequency (SHF) band extends between 3 GHz and 30 GHz, also referred to as centimeter wave. Communications using the mmW/near mmW radio frequency band have high path loss and a relatively short range. The mmW base station 180 and the UE 182 may utilize beamforming (transmit and/or receive) over a mmW communication link 184 to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short range. Further, it will be appreciated that in alternative configurations, one or more base stations 102 may also transmit using mmW or near mmW and beamforming. Accordingly, it will be appreciated that the foregoing illustrations are merely examples and should not be construed to limit the various aspects disclosed herein.
Transmit beamforming is a technique for focusing an RF signal in a specific direction. Traditionally, when a network node (e.g., a base station) broadcasts an RF signal, it broadcasts the signal in all directions (omni-directionally). With transmit beamforming, the network node determines where a given target device (e.g., a UE) is located (relative to the transmitting network node) and projects a stronger downlink RF signal in that specific direction, thereby providing a faster (in terms of data rate) and stronger RF signal for the receiving device(s). To change the directionality of the RF signal when transmitting, a network node can control the phase and relative amplitude of the RF signal at each of the one or more transmitters that are broadcasting the RF signal. For example, a network node may use an array of antennas (referred to as a “phased array” or an “antenna array”) that creates a beam of RF waves that can be “steered” to point in different directions, without actually moving the antennas. Specifically, the RF current from the transmitter is fed to the individual antennas with the correct phase relationship so that the radio waves from the separate antennas add together to increase the radiation in a desired direction, while cancelling to suppress radiation in undesired directions.
Transmit beams may be quasi-co-located, meaning that they appear to the receiver (e.g., a UE) as having the same parameters, regardless of whether or not the transmitting antennas of the network node themselves are physically co-located. In NR, there are four types of quasi-co-location (QCL) relations. Specifically, a QCL relation of a given type means that certain parameters about a second reference RF signal on a second beam can be derived from information about a source reference RF signal on a source beam. Thus, if the source reference RF signal is QCL Type A, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, and delay spread of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL Type B, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and Doppler spread of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL Type C, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and average delay of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL Type D, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the spatial receive parameter of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel.
In receive beamforming, the receiver uses a receive beam to amplify RF signals detected on a given channel. For example, the receiver can increase the gain setting and/or adjust the phase setting of an array of antennas in a particular direction to amplify (e.g., to increase the gain level of) the RF signals received from that direction. Thus, when a receiver is said to beamform in a certain direction, it means the beam gain in that direction is high relative to the beam gain along other directions, or the beam gain in that direction is the highest compared to the beam gain in that direction of all other receive beams available to the receiver. This results in a stronger received signal strength (e.g., reference signal received power (RSRP), reference signal received quality (RSRQ), signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), etc.) of the RF signals received from that direction.
Transmit and receive beams may be spatially related. A spatial relation means that parameters for a second beam (e.g., a transmit or receive beam) for a second reference signal can be derived from information about a first beam (e.g., a receive beam or a transmit beam) for a first reference signal. For example, a UE may use a particular receive beam to receive a reference downlink reference signal (e.g., synchronization signal block (SSB)) from a base station. The UE can then form a transmit beam for sending an uplink reference signal (e.g., sounding reference signal (SRS)) to that base station based on the parameters of the receive beam.
Note that a “downlink” beam may be either a transmit beam or a receive beam, depending on the entity forming it. For example, if a base station is forming the downlink beam to transmit a reference signal to a UE, the downlink beam is a transmit beam. If the UE is forming the downlink beam, however, it is a receive beam to receive the downlink reference signal. Similarly, an “uplink” beam may be either a transmit beam or a receive beam, depending on the entity forming it. For example, if a base station is forming the uplink beam, it is an uplink receive beam, and if a UE is forming the uplink beam, it is an uplink transmit beam.
In 5G, the frequency spectrum in which wireless nodes (e.g., base stations 102/180, UEs 104/182) operate is divided into multiple frequency ranges, FR1 (from 450 to 6000 MHz), FR2 (from 24250 to 52600 MHz), FR3 (above 52600 MHz), and FR4 (between FR1 and FR2). mmW frequency bands generally include the FR2, FR3, and FR4 frequency ranges. As such, the terms “mmW” and “FR2” or “FR3” or “FR4” may generally be used interchangeably.
In a multi-carrier system, such as 5G, one of the carrier frequencies is referred to as the “primary carrier” or “anchor carrier” or “primary serving cell” or “PCell,” and the remaining carrier frequencies are referred to as “secondary carriers” or “secondary serving cells” or “SCells.” In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is the carrier operating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) utilized by a UE 104/182 and the cell in which the UE 104/182 either performs the initial radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment procedure or initiates the RRC connection re-establishment procedure. The primary carrier carries all common and UE-specific control channels, and may be a carrier in a licensed frequency (however, this is not always the case). A secondary carrier is a carrier operating on a second frequency (e.g., FR2) that may be configured once the RRC connection is established between the UE 104 and the anchor carrier and that may be used to provide additional radio resources. In some cases, the secondary carrier may be a carrier in an unlicensed frequency. The secondary carrier may contain only necessary signaling information and signals, for example, those that are UE-specific may not be present in the secondary carrier, since both primary uplink and downlink carriers are typically UE-specific. This means that different UEs 104/182 in a cell may have different downlink primary carriers. The same is true for the uplink primary carriers. The network is able to change the primary carrier of any UE 104/182 at any time. This is done, for example, to balance the load on different carriers. Because a “serving cell” (whether a PCell or an SCell) corresponds to a carrier frequency/component carrier over which some base station is communicating, the term “cell,” “serving cell,” “component carrier,” “carrier frequency,” and the like can be used interchangeably.
For example, still referring to
The wireless communications system 100 may further include a UE 164 that may communicate with a macro cell base station 102 over a communication link 120 and/or the mmW base station 180 over a mmW communication link 184. For example, the macro cell base station 102 may support a PCell and one or more SCells for the UE 164 and the mmW base station 180 may support one or more SCells for the UE 164.
In the example of
In a satellite positioning system, the use of signals 124 can be augmented by various satellite-based augmentation systems (SBAS) that may be associated with or otherwise enabled for use with one or more global and/or regional navigation satellite systems. For example an SBAS may include an augmentation system(s) that provides integrity information, differential corrections, etc., such as the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), the Multi-functional Satellite Augmentation System (MSAS), the Global Positioning System (GPS) Aided Geo Augmented Navigation or GPS and Geo Augmented Navigation system (GAGAN), and/or the like. Thus, as used herein, a satellite positioning system may include any combination of one or more global and/or regional navigation satellites associated with such one or more satellite positioning systems.
In an aspect, SVs 112 may additionally or alternatively be part of one or more non-terrestrial networks (NTNs). In an NTN, an SV 112 is connected to an earth station (also referred to as a ground station, NTN gateway, or gateway), which in turn is connected to an element in a 5G network, such as a modified base station 102 (without a terrestrial antenna) or a network node in a 5GC. This element would in turn provide access to other elements in the 5G network and ultimately to entities external to the 5G network, such as Internet web servers and other user devices. In that way, a UE 104 may receive communication signals (e.g., signals 124) from an SV 112 instead of, or in addition to, communication signals from a terrestrial base station 102.
The wireless communications system 100 may further include one or more UEs, such as UE 190, that connects indirectly to one or more communication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D) peer-to-peer (P2P) links (referred to as “sidelinks”). In the example of
Another optional aspect may include a location server 230, which may be in communication with the 5GC 210 to provide location assistance for UE(s) 204. The location server 230 can be implemented as a plurality of separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules spread across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternately may each correspond to a single server. The location server 230 can be configured to support one or more location services for UEs 204 that can connect to the location server 230 via the core network, 5GC 210, and/or via the Internet (not illustrated). Further, the location server 230 may be integrated into a component of the core network, or alternatively may be external to the core network (e.g., a third party server, such as an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) server or service server).
Functions of the UPF 262 include acting as an anchor point for intra-/inter-RAT mobility (when applicable), acting as an external protocol data unit (PDU) session point of interconnect to a data network (not shown), providing packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection, user plane policy rule enforcement (e.g., gating, redirection, traffic steering), lawful interception (user plane collection), traffic usage reporting, quality of service (QoS) handling for the user plane (e.g., uplink/downlink rate enforcement, reflective QoS marking in the downlink), uplink traffic verification (service data flow (SDF) to QoS flow mapping), transport level packet marking in the uplink and downlink, downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering, and sending and forwarding of one or more “end markers” to the source RAN node. The UPF 262 may also support transfer of location services messages over a user plane between the UE 204 and a location server, such as an SLP 272.
The functions of the SMF 266 include session management, UE Internet protocol (IP) address allocation and management, selection and control of user plane functions, configuration of traffic steering at the UPF 262 to route traffic to the proper destination, control of part of policy enforcement and QoS, and downlink data notification. The interface over which the SMF 266 communicates with the AMF 264 is referred to as the N11 interface.
Another optional aspect may include an LMF 270, which may be in communication with the 5GC 260 to provide location assistance for UEs 204. The LMF 270 can be implemented as a plurality of separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules spread across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternately may each correspond to a single server. The LMF 270 can be configured to support one or more location services for UEs 204 that can connect to the LMF 270 via the core network, 5GC 260, and/or via the Internet (not illustrated). The SLP 272 may support similar functions to the LMF 270, but whereas the LMF 270 may communicate with the AMF 264, NG-RAN 220, and UEs 204 over a control plane (e.g., using interfaces and protocols intended to convey signaling messages and not voice or data), the SLP 272 may communicate with UEs 204 and external clients (not shown in
User plane interface 263 and control plane interface 265 connect the 5GC 260, and specifically the UPF 262 and AMF 264, respectively, to one or more gNBs 222 and/or ng-eNBs 224 in the NG-RAN 220. The interface between gNB(s) 222 and/or ng-eNB(s) 224 and the AMF 264 is referred to as the “N2” interface, and the interface between gNB(s) 222 and/or ng-eNB(s) 224 and the UPF 262 is referred to as the “N3” interface. The gNB(s) 222 and/or ng-eNB(s) 224 of the NG-RAN 220 may communicate directly with each other via backhaul connections 223, referred to as the “Xn-C” interface. One or more of gNBs 222 and/or ng-eNBs 224 may communicate with one or more UEs 204 over a wireless interface, referred to as the “Uu” interface.
The functionality of a gNB 222 is divided between a gNB central unit (gNB-CU) 226 and one or more gNB distributed units (gNB-DUs) 228. The interface 232 between the gNB-CU 226 and the one or more gNB-DUs 228 is referred to as the “F1” interface. A gNB-CU 226 is a logical node that includes the base station functions of transferring user data, mobility control, radio access network sharing, positioning, session management, and the like, except for those functions allocated exclusively to the gNB-DU(s) 228. More specifically, the gNB-CU 226 hosts the radio resource control (RRC), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) protocols of the gNB 222. A gNB-DU 228 is a logical node that hosts the radio link control (RLC), medium access control (MAC), and physical (PHY) layers of the gNB 222. Its operation is controlled by the gNB-CU 226. One gNB-DU 228 can support one or more cells, and one cell is supported by only one gNB-DU 228. Thus, a UE 204 communicates with the gNB-CU 226 via the RRC, SDAP, and PDCP layers and with a gNB-DU 228 via the RLC, MAC, and PHY layers.
The UE 302 and the base station 304 each include one or more wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceivers 310 and 350, respectively, providing means for communicating (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, means for measuring, means for tuning, means for refraining from transmitting, etc.) via one or more wireless communication networks (not shown), such as an NR network, an LTE network, a GSM network, and/or the like. The WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may each be connected to one or more antennas 316 and 356, respectively, for communicating with other network nodes, such as other UEs, access points, base stations (e.g., eNBs, gNBs), etc., via at least one designated RAT (e.g., NR, LTE, GSM, etc.) over a wireless communication medium of interest (e.g., some set of time/frequency resources in a particular frequency spectrum). The WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may be variously configured for transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, and so on), respectively, and, conversely, for receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, and so on), respectively, in accordance with the designated RAT. Specifically, the WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 include one or more transmitters 314 and 354, respectively, for transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358, respectively, and one or more receivers 312 and 352, respectively, for receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358, respectively.
The UE 302 and the base station 304 each also include, at least in some cases, one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360, respectively. The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be connected to one or more antennas 326 and 366, respectively, and provide means for communicating (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, means for measuring, means for tuning, means for refraining from transmitting, etc.) with other network nodes, such as other UEs, access points, base stations, etc., via at least one designated RAT (e.g., WiFi, LTE-D, Bluetooth®, Zigbee®, Z-Wave®, PCS, dedicated short-range communications (DSRC), wireless access for vehicular environments (WAVE), near-field communication (NFC), etc.) over a wireless communication medium of interest. The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be variously configured for transmitting and encoding signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, and so on), respectively, and, conversely, for receiving and decoding signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, and so on), respectively, in accordance with the designated RAT. Specifically, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 include one or more transmitters 324 and 364, respectively, for transmitting and encoding signals 328 and 368, respectively, and one or more receivers 322 and 362, respectively, for receiving and decoding signals 328 and 368, respectively. As specific examples, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be WiFi transceivers, Bluetooth® transceivers, Zigbee® and/or Z-Wave® transceivers, NFC transceivers, or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and/or vehicle-to-everything (V2X) transceivers.
The UE 302 and the base station 304 also include, at least in some cases, satellite signal receivers 330 and 370. The satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may be connected to one or more antennas 336 and 376, respectively, and may provide means for receiving and/or measuring satellite positioning/communication signals 338 and 378, respectively. Where the satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are satellite positioning system receivers, the satellite positioning/communication signals 338 and 378 may be global positioning system (GPS) signals, global navigation satellite system (GLONASS) signals, Galileo signals, Beidou signals, Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (NAVIC), Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), etc. Where the satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are non-terrestrial network (NTN) receivers, the satellite positioning/communication signals 338 and 378 may be communication signals (e.g., carrying control and/or user data) originating from a 5G network. The satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may comprise any suitable hardware and/or software for receiving and processing satellite positioning/communication signals 338 and 378, respectively. The satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may request information and operations as appropriate from the other systems, and, at least in some cases, perform calculations to determine locations of the UE 302 and the base station 304, respectively, using measurements obtained by any suitable satellite positioning system algorithm.
The base station 304 and the network entity 306 each include one or more network transceivers 380 and 390, respectively, providing means for communicating (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, etc.) with other network entities (e.g., other base stations 304, other network entities 306). For example, the base station 304 may employ the one or more network transceivers 380 to communicate with other base stations 304 or network entities 306 over one or more wired or wireless backhaul links. As another example, the network entity 306 may employ the one or more network transceivers 390 to communicate with one or more base station 304 over one or more wired or wireless backhaul links, or with other network entities 306 over one or more wired or wireless core network interfaces.
A transceiver may be configured to communicate over a wired or wireless link. A transceiver (whether a wired transceiver or a wireless transceiver) includes transmitter circuitry (e.g., transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) and receiver circuitry (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352, 362). A transceiver may be an integrated device (e.g., embodying transmitter circuitry and receiver circuitry in a single device) in some implementations, may comprise separate transmitter circuitry and separate receiver circuitry in some implementations, or may be embodied in other ways in other implementations. The transmitter circuitry and receiver circuitry of a wired transceiver (e.g., network transceivers 380 and 390 in some implementations) may be coupled to one or more wired network interface ports. Wireless transmitter circuitry (e.g., transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) may include or be coupled to a plurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, that permits the respective apparatus (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform transmit “beamforming,” as described herein. Similarly, wireless receiver circuitry (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352, 362) may include or be coupled to a plurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, that permits the respective apparatus (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform receive beamforming, as described herein. In an aspect, the transmitter circuitry and receiver circuitry may share the same plurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such that the respective apparatus can only receive or transmit at a given time, not both at the same time. A wireless transceiver (e.g., WWAN transceivers 310 and 350, short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360) may also include a network listen module (NLM) or the like for performing various measurements.
As used herein, the various wireless transceivers (e.g., transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360, and network transceivers 380 and 390 in some implementations) and wired transceivers (e.g., network transceivers 380 and 390 in some implementations) may generally be characterized as “a transceiver,” “at least one transceiver,” or “one or more transceivers.” As such, whether a particular transceiver is a wired or wireless transceiver may be inferred from the type of communication performed. For example, backhaul communication between network devices or servers will generally relate to signaling via a wired transceiver, whereas wireless communication between a UE (e.g., UE 302) and a base station (e.g., base station 304) will generally relate to signaling via a wireless transceiver.
The UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 also include other components that may be used in conjunction with the operations as disclosed herein. The UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 include one or more processors 332, 384, and 394, respectively, for providing functionality relating to, for example, wireless communication, and for providing other processing functionality. The processors 332, 384, and 394 may therefore provide means for processing, such as means for determining, means for calculating, means for receiving, means for transmitting, means for indicating, etc. In an aspect, the processors 332, 384, and 394 may include, for example, one or more general purpose processors, multi-core processors, central processing units (CPUs), ASICs, digital signal processors (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), other programmable logic devices or processing circuitry, or various combinations thereof.
The UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 include memory circuitry implementing memories 340, 386, and 396 (e.g., each including a memory device), respectively, for maintaining information (e.g., information indicative of reserved resources, thresholds, parameters, and so on). The memories 340, 386, and 396 may therefore provide means for storing, means for retrieving, means for maintaining, etc. In some cases, the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 may include positioning component 342, 388, and 398, respectively. The positioning component 342, 388, and 398 may be hardware circuits that are part of or coupled to the processors 332, 384, and 394, respectively, that, when executed, cause the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 to perform the functionality described herein. In other aspects, the positioning component 342, 388, and 398 may be external to the processors 332, 384, and 394 (e.g., part of a modem processing system, integrated with another processing system, etc.). Alternatively, the positioning component 342, 388, and 398 may be memory modules stored in the memories 340, 386, and 396, respectively, that, when executed by the processors 332, 384, and 394 (or a modem processing system, another processing system, etc.), cause the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 to perform the functionality described herein.
The UE 302 may include one or more sensors 344 coupled to the one or more processors 332 to provide means for sensing or detecting movement and/or orientation information that is independent of motion data derived from signals received by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320, and/or the satellite signal receiver 330. By way of example, the sensor(s) 344 may include an accelerometer (e.g., a micro-electrical mechanical systems (MEMS) device), a gyroscope, a geomagnetic sensor (e.g., a compass), an altimeter (e.g., a barometric pressure altimeter), and/or any other type of movement detection sensor. Moreover, the sensor(s) 344 may include a plurality of different types of devices and combine their outputs in order to provide motion information. For example, the sensor(s) 344 may use a combination of a multi-axis accelerometer and orientation sensors to provide the ability to compute positions in two-dimensional (2D) and/or three-dimensional (3D) coordinate systems.
In addition, the UE 302 includes a user interface 346 providing means for providing indications (e.g., audible and/or visual indications) to a user and/or for receiving user input (e.g., upon user actuation of a sensing device such a keypad, a touch screen, a microphone, and so on). Although not shown, the base station 304 and the network entity 306 may also include user interfaces.
Referring to the one or more processors 384 in more detail, in the downlink, IP packets from the network entity 306 may be provided to the processor 384. The one or more processors 384 may implement functionality for an RRC layer, a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a medium access control (MAC) layer. The one or more processors 384 may provide RRC layer functionality associated with broadcasting of system information (e.g., master information block (MIB), system information blocks (SIBs)), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-RAT mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression/decompression, security (ciphering, deciphering, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functionality associated with the transfer of upper layer PDUs, error correction through automatic repeat request (ARQ), concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, scheduling information reporting, error correction, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.
The transmitter 354 and the receiver 352 may implement Layer-1 (L1) functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Layer-1, which includes a physical (PHY) layer, may include error detection on the transport channels, forward error correction (FEC) coding/decoding of the transport channels, interleaving, rate matching, mapping onto physical channels, modulation/demodulation of physical channels, and MIMO antenna processing. The transmitter 354 handles mapping to signal constellations based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase-shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase-shift keying (QPSK), M-phase-shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols may then be split into parallel streams. Each stream may then be mapped to an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., pilot) in the time and/or frequency domain, and then combined together using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM symbol stream is spatially precoded to produce multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from a channel estimator may be used to determine the coding and modulation scheme, as well as for spatial processing. The channel estimate may be derived from a reference signal and/or channel condition feedback transmitted by the UE 302. Each spatial stream may then be provided to one or more different antennas 356. The transmitter 354 may modulate an RF carrier with a respective spatial stream for transmission.
At the UE 302, the receiver 312 receives a signal through its respective antenna(s) 316. The receiver 312 recovers information modulated onto an RF carrier and provides the information to the one or more processors 332. The transmitter 314 and the receiver 312 implement Layer-1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. The receiver 312 may perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial streams destined for the UE 302. If multiple spatial streams are destined for the UE 302, they may be combined by the receiver 312 into a single OFDM symbol stream. The receiver 312 then converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time-domain to the frequency domain using a fast Fourier transform (FFT). The frequency domain signal comprises a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols on each subcarrier, and the reference signal, are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation points transmitted by the base station 304. These soft decisions may be based on channel estimates computed by a channel estimator. The soft decisions are then decoded and de-interleaved to recover the data and control signals that were originally transmitted by the base station 304 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to the one or more processors 332, which implements Layer-3 (L3) and Layer-2 (L2) functionality.
In the uplink, the one or more processors 332 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, deciphering, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the core network. The one or more processors 332 are also responsible for error detection.
Similar to the functionality described in connection with the downlink transmission by the base station 304, the one or more processors 332 provides RRC layer functionality associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIBs) acquisition, RRC connections, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression/decompression, and security (ciphering, deciphering, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functionality associated with the transfer of upper layer PDUs, error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs, re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through hybrid automatic repeat request (HARD), priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.
Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator from a reference signal or feedback transmitted by the base station 304 may be used by the transmitter 314 to select the appropriate coding and modulation schemes, and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the transmitter 314 may be provided to different antenna(s) 316. The transmitter 314 may modulate an RF carrier with a respective spatial stream for transmission.
The uplink transmission is processed at the base station 304 in a manner similar to that described in connection with the receiver function at the UE 302. The receiver 352 receives a signal through its respective antenna(s) 356. The receiver 352 recovers information modulated onto an RF carrier and provides the information to the one or more processors 384.
In the uplink, the one or more processors 384 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, deciphering, header decompression, control signal processing to recover IP packets from the UE 302. IP packets from the one or more processors 384 may be provided to the core network. The one or more processors 384 are also responsible for error detection.
For convenience, the UE 302, the base station 304, and/or the network entity 306 are shown in
The various components of the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 may be communicatively coupled to each other over data buses 334, 382, and 392, respectively. In an aspect, the data buses 334, 382, and 392 may form, or be part of, a communication interface of the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306, respectively. For example, where different logical entities are embodied in the same device (e.g., gNB and location server functionality incorporated into the same base station 304), the data buses 334, 382, and 392 may provide communication between them.
The components of
In some designs, the network entity 306 may be implemented as a core network component. In other designs, the network entity 306 may be distinct from a network operator or operation of the cellular network infrastructure (e.g., NG RAN 220 and/or 5GC 210/260). For example, the network entity 306 may be a component of a private network that may be configured to communicate with the UE 302 via the base station 304 or independently from the base station 304 (e.g., over a non-cellular communication link, such as WiFi).
NR supports a number of cellular network-based positioning technologies, including downlink-based, uplink-based, and downlink-and-uplink-based positioning methods. Downlink-based positioning methods include observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA) in LTE, downlink time difference of arrival (DL-TDOA) in NR, and downlink angle-of-departure (DL-AoD) in NR.
For DL-AoD positioning, illustrated by scenario 420, the positioning entity uses a beam report from the target UE of received signal strength measurements of multiple downlink transmit beams to determine the angle(s) between the UE and the transmitting base station(s). The positioning entity can then estimate the location of the UE based on the determined angle(s) and the known location(s) of the transmitting base station(s).
Uplink-based positioning methods include uplink time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA) and uplink angle-of-arrival (UL-AoA). UL-TDOA is similar to DL-TDOA, but is based on uplink reference signals (e.g., sounding reference signals (SRS)) transmitted by the target UE. For UL-AoA positioning, one or more base stations measure the received signal strength of one or more uplink reference signals (e.g., SRS) received from a UE on one or more uplink receive beams. The positioning entity uses the signal strength measurements and the angle(s) of the receive beam(s) to determine the angle(s) between the UE and the base station(s). Based on the determined angle(s) and the known location(s) of the base station(s), the positioning entity can then estimate the location of the UE.
Downlink-and-uplink-based positioning methods include enhanced cell-ID (E-CID) positioning and multi-round-trip-time (RTT) positioning (also referred to as “multi-cell RTT”). In an RTT procedure, an initiator (a base station or a UE) transmits an RTT measurement signal (e.g., a PRS or SRS) to a responder (a UE or base station), which transmits an RTT response signal (e.g., an SRS or PRS) back to the initiator. The RTT response signal includes the difference between the ToA of the RTT measurement signal and the transmission time of the RTT response signal, referred to as the reception-to-transmission (Rx-Tx) time difference. The initiator calculates the difference between the transmission time of the RTT measurement signal and the ToA of the RTT response signal, referred to as the transmission-to-reception (Tx-Rx) time difference. The propagation time (also referred to as the “time of flight”) between the initiator and the responder can be calculated from the Tx-Rx and Rx-Tx time differences. Based on the propagation time and the known speed of light, the distance between the initiator and the responder can be determined. For multi-RTT positioning, illustrated by scenario 430, a target UE performs an RTT procedure with multiple base stations to enable its location to be determined (e.g., using multilateration) based on the known locations of the base stations. RTT and multi-RTT methods can be combined with other positioning techniques, such as UL-AoA, illustrated by scenario 440, and DL-AoD, to improve location accuracy.
The E-CID positioning method is based on radio resource management (RRM) measurements. In E-CID, the UE reports the serving cell ID, the timing advance (TA), and the identifiers, estimated timing, and signal strength of detected neighbor base stations. The location of the target UE is then estimated based on this information and the known locations of the base station(s).
To assist positioning operations, a location server (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272) may provide assistance data to the target UE. For example, the assistance data may include identifiers of the base stations (or the cells/TRPs of the base stations) from which to measure reference signals, the reference signal configuration parameters (e.g., the number of consecutive positioning subframes, periodicity of positioning subframes, muting sequence, frequency hopping sequence, reference signal identifier, reference signal bandwidth, etc.), and/or other parameters applicable to the particular positioning method. Alternatively, the assistance data may originate directly from the base stations themselves (e.g., in periodically broadcasted overhead messages, etc.). In some cases, the UE may be able to detect neighbor network nodes itself without the use of assistance data.
In the case of an OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning procedure, the assistance data may further include an expected RSTD value and an associated uncertainty, or search window, around the expected RSTD. In some cases, the value range of the expected RSTD may be +/−500 microseconds (μs). In some cases, when any of the resources used for the positioning measurement are in FR1, the value range for the uncertainty of the expected RSTD may be +/−32 μs. In other cases, when all of the resources used for the positioning measurement(s) are in FR2, the value range for the uncertainty of the expected RSTD may be +/−8 μs.
A location estimate may be referred to by other names, such as a position estimate, location, position, position fix, fix, or the like. A location estimate may be geodetic and comprise coordinates (e.g., latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude) or may be civic and comprise a street address, postal address, or some other verbal description of a location. A location estimate may further be defined relative to some other known location or defined in absolute terms (e.g., using latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude). A location estimate may include an expected error or uncertainty (e.g., by including an area or volume within which the location is expected to be included with some specified or default level of confidence).
When an electromagnetic wave hits a surface, which is much larger than the wavelength, part of the energy of the wave is reflected, part of it is absorbed by the surface, and the remainder is refracted through the surface.
In the example of
All of the clusters of channel taps for a given RF signal represent the multipath channel (or simply channel) between the transmitter and receiver. Under the channel illustrated in
A TRP (or UE or other device) that participates in a positioning procedure with a target UE and has a known location (at least to the positioning entity) is referred to as an “anchor” (or “anchor point” or “anchor node” or the like). A “virtual anchor” (VA) is a virtual TRP that appears to be located at a location that, with respect to a reflecting surface, is a mirror image of the location of the real, or physical, TRP/anchor. More specifically, according to the two-ray channel model (i.e., a channel having at least an LOS path and an NLOS path, as described with reference to
As shown above, reflected multipath components can be readily used to improve positioning by tracking the virtual anchor locations, as illustrated in
Traditional positioning methods rely on at least three LOS measurements from TRPs to estimate the location of a UE (e.g., via trilateration/triangulation). In many environments, it is possible for TRPs to be blocked from the LOS view of a UE, resulting in an insufficient number of LOS measurements. In such cases, traditional positioning methods can fail.
A UE may determine the location of a virtual anchor by extracting multipath components of the RF signal(s) received from a TRP and tracking the virtual anchor location over time (assuming UE mobility). Depending on the UE's capability of measuring the angle of arrival (AoA) of an RF signal (or more specifically, the multipath components of an RF signal), the location of a virtual anchor can be estimated based on (1) AoA and ToF or (2) ToF-only. Once the location of the virtual anchor is determined, it can be used as an anchor for a positioning procedure (e.g., RTT, DL-TDOA, etc.).
Regarding the AoA and ToF technique, the location of a virtual anchor can be derived based on one type of measurement of the RF signal(s) received from a TRP, specifically, the AoA measurement of the NLOS component(s) of the RF signal(s). The ToF may be determined from the known transmission time(s) of the RF signal(s) (from the TRP) and the time(s) of arrival (ToA(s)), or reception time(s), at the UE. The TRP may report the transmission time(s) of the RF signal(s) to the positioning entity, which may be the UE for UE-based positioning or a location server (e.g., LMF 270) for UE-assisted positioning. For UE-assisted positioning, the UE reports the ToA(s) and AoA(s) of the NLOS component(s) of the RF signal(s) to the location server. The location of the virtual anchor is then calculated at a point that is the distance from the UE indicated by the ToF and at an angle from the UE indicated by the AoA (i.e., in the direction of the AoA).
Regarding the ToF-only technique, the location of the virtual anchor can be derived by intersecting consecutive circles around the UE as it moves, each circle having a radius of the range to the virtual anchor determined based on the ToF of the NLOS paths.
Although the moving UEs in
A UE may extract/determine multiple NLOS multipath components (e.g., as shown in
For UE-assisted positioning procedures, as noted above, the UE reports the measured multipath delays (ToAs) and, optionally, the corresponding angles to the location server (which may be located in the core network or the RAN). More specifically, the UE reports multiple prominent peaks that may considered reflected, diffracted, or scattered paths.
Currently, a UE can report measurements of two additional paths (in addition to the measurement reported as the actual positioning measurement) when reporting measurements for positioning purposes. The measurements may be the reception times of the paths, RSTD (or relative time difference) measurements based on the paths, Rx-Tx time difference measurements based on the paths, etc. These additional path fields can be used to report measurements based on either (1) additional hypothesis for LOS delay or (2) actual multipath (second multipath or later) components that can be used to derive virtual TRP locations. Regarding the first option, the actual positioning measurement being reported (e.g., RSTD, Rx-Tx difference, ToA, etc.) would be based on the UE's primary hypothesis for the LOS delay (i.e., the UE's best estimate of which multipath is the LOS path and the reception time of that path), but the UE may report additional hypothesis for the LOS delay if the UE is not certain of the LOS delay of the reported measurement (e.g., due to a weak path).
The present disclosure proposes to allow the UE to indicate additional information (parameters) about each additional path it reports, rather than just the positioning measurement (e.g., reception time, RSTD, Rx-Tx time difference) based on that path. For example, a UE may tag an additional path field as belonging to an additional hypothesis of the LOS delay, or as a multipath, or both. The UE may also report a parameter indicating the strength of the path (e.g., SINR, RSRP). The UE may also report a parameter indicating whether the UE believes the path is a reflected path, a scattered path, a diffracted path, etc. How the UE estimates the path is a reflected path, a scattered path, a diffracted path, etc. is up to implementation, and may be based on previous observations.
In addition to the relative time difference measurement field or the reception time field, an additional path information element (“NR-AdditionalPath-r16”) may include a field (not shown) indicating that the measured path is one of multiple hypothesis of the LOS delay, or a multipath, or both. The additional path information element may also include a field (not shown) indicating the strength of the path. The additional path information element may also include a field (not shown) indicating whether the UE believes the path is a reflected path, a scattered path, a diffracted path, etc.
For UE-based and UE-assisted positioning procedures, consider a scenario in which a UE identifies a virtual anchor having a consistent location across multiple multipath component measurements. In an aspect, the UE can report an estimated location and uncertainty of the virtual anchor to the location server (the positioning entity for UE-assisted positioning). The positioning entity (the UE or location server) will now have one extra equation for estimating the location of the UE (by using the virtual anchor as an anchor point). The positioning entity can keep this information in a database, along with similar information from other UEs (referred to as “crowdsourcing”), and use it to improve positioning accuracy for future positioning procedures with other UEs. For example, referring to
In an aspect, for UE-based positioning procedures, the estimated location of a virtual anchor can be signaled to the UE in assistance data. The assistance data may also include an uncertainty of the estimated location of the virtual anchor. The UE can then determine whether it will use this additional information for improving UE-based positioning accuracy. That is, the UE can determine whether it will use the virtual anchor as an anchor for the positioning procedure.
The various information elements illustrated in
At 1410, the positioning entity determines a first ToF of a first NLOS multipath component of a first RF signal transmitted by a physical TRP (e.g., a TRP of any of the base stations described herein) to at least a first UE (e.g., any of the UEs described herein). In an aspect, where the positioning entity is a UE, operation 1410 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation. In an aspect, where the positioning entity is a base station, operation 1410 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 350, the one or more network transceivers 380, the one or more processors 384, memory 386, or positioning component 388, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation. In an aspect, where the positioning entity is a location server, operation 1410 may be performed by the one or more network transceivers 390, the one or more processors 394, memory 396, or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.
At 1420, the positioning entity determines a location of a virtual TRP (e.g., virtual anchor 706, 806, 1006) associated with the physical TRP based at least on the first ToF. In an aspect, where the positioning entity is a UE, operation 1420 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation. In an aspect, where the positioning entity is a base station, operation 1420 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 350, the one or more network transceivers 380, the one or more processors 384, memory 386, or positioning component 388, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation. In an aspect, where the positioning entity is a location server, operation 1420 may be performed by the one or more network transceivers 390, the one or more processors 394, memory 396, or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.
At 1430, the positioning entity determines a location of at least a second UE (e.g., the first UE or a different UE) based, at least in part, on the location of the virtual TRP. In an aspect, where the positioning entity is a UE, operation 1430 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation. In an aspect, where the positioning entity is a base station, operation 1430 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 350, the one or more network transceivers 380, the one or more processors 384, memory 386, or positioning component 388, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation. In an aspect, where the positioning entity is a location server, operation 1430 may be performed by the one or more network transceivers 390, the one or more processors 394, memory 396, or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.
At 1510, the UE determines a positioning measurement of a first multipath component of an RF signal transmitted by a TRP (e.g., a TRP of any of the base stations described herein). In an aspect, operation 1510 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.
At 1520, the UE determines a first additional positioning measurement of a second multipath component of the RF signal. In an aspect, operation 1520 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.
At 1530, the UE determines a second additional positioning measurement of a third multipath component of the RF signal. In an aspect, operation 1530 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.
At 1540, the UE transmits a measurement report to a location server, the measurement report including at least the positioning measurement, the first additional positioning measurement, the second additional positioning measurement, and one or more parameters associated with the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement. In an aspect, operation 1540 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.
At 1610, the UE determines an estimated location of a virtual TRP associated with a physical TRP (e.g., a TRP of any of the base stations described herein) based, at least in part, on one or more ToFs of one or more NLOS multipath components of one or more RF signals transmitted by the physical TRP. In an aspect, operation 1610 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.
At 1620, the UE transmits, to a positioning entity (e.g., a location server or the serving base station), the estimated location of the virtual TRP. In an aspect, operation 1620 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.
At 1710, the UE receives assistance data for a positioning session from a positioning entity (e.g., a location server or the UE's serving base station), the assistance data including a location of at least one physical TRP (e.g., a TRP of any of the base stations described herein) and a location of at least one virtual TRP associated with the at least one physical TRP, wherein the at least one virtual TRP appears to transmit one or more NLOS multipath components of one or more RF signals transmitted by the at least one physical TRP. In an aspect, operation 1710 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.
At 1720, the UE estimates a location of the UE based, at least in part, on the location of the physical TRP, the location of the virtual TRP, measurements of one or more LOS multipath components of the one or more RF signals, and the one or more NLOS multipath components of the one or more RF signals. In an aspect, operation 1720 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.
As will be appreciated, a technical advantage of the methods 1400 to 1700 is the ability to use virtual TRPs as additional anchor points for positioning.
In the detailed description above it can be seen that different features are grouped together in examples. This manner of disclosure should not be understood as an intention that the example clauses have more features than are explicitly mentioned in each clause. Rather, the various aspects of the disclosure may include fewer than all features of an individual example clause disclosed. Therefore, the following clauses should hereby be deemed to be incorporated in the description, wherein each clause by itself can stand as a separate example. Although each dependent clause can refer in the clauses to a specific combination with one of the other clauses, the aspect(s) of that dependent clause are not limited to the specific combination. It will be appreciated that other example clauses can also include a combination of the dependent clause aspect(s) with the subject matter of any other dependent clause or independent clause or a combination of any feature with other dependent and independent clauses. The various aspects disclosed herein expressly include these combinations, unless it is explicitly expressed or can be readily inferred that a specific combination is not intended (e.g., contradictory aspects, such as defining an element as both an insulator and a conductor). Furthermore, it is also intended that aspects of a clause can be included in any other independent clause, even if the clause is not directly dependent on the independent clause.
Implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses:
Clause 1. A method of wireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising: determining a positioning measurement of a first multipath component of a radio frequency (RF) signal transmitted by a transmission-reception point (TRP); determining a first additional positioning measurement of a second multipath component of the RF signal; determining a second additional positioning measurement of a third multipath component of the RF signal; and transmitting a measurement report to a location server, the measurement report including at least the positioning measurement, the first additional positioning measurement, the second additional positioning measurement, and one or more parameters associated with the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement.
Clause 2. The method of clause 1, wherein the one or more parameters include: a line-of-sight (LOS) parameter indicating whether the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement are based on additional hypothesis of a reception time of an LOS path between the TRP and the UE, a first LOS parameter indicating whether the first additional positioning measurement is based on a first hypothesis of the reception time of the LOS path between the TRP and the UE, a second LOS parameter indicating whether the second additional positioning measurement is based on a second hypothesis of the reception time of the LOS path between the TRP and the UE, or the first LOS parameter and the second LOS parameter.
Clause 3. The method of any of clauses 1 to 2, wherein the one or more parameters include: a non-line-of-sight (NLOS) parameter indicating whether the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement are based on NLOS paths between the TRP and the UE, a first NLOS parameter indicating whether the first additional positioning measurement is based on a first NLOS path between the TRP and the UE, a second NLOS parameter indicating whether the second additional positioning measurement is based on a second NLOS path between the TRP and the UE, or the first NLOS parameter and the second NLOS parameter.
Clause 4. The method of any of clauses 1 to 3, wherein the one or more parameters include: a signal strength of the second multipath component, a signal strength of the third multipath component, or the signal strength of the second multipath component and the signal strength of the third multipath component.
Clause 5. The method of any of clauses 1 to 4, wherein the one or more parameters include: a path type parameter indicating whether the second multipath component and the third multipath component are believed to be reflected paths, scattered paths, or diffracted paths, a first path type parameter indicating whether the second multipath component is believed to be a first reflected path, a first scattered path, or a first diffracted path, a second path type parameter indicating whether the third multipath component is believed to be a second reflected path, a second scattered path, or a second diffracted path, or the first path type parameter and the second path type parameter.
Clause 6. The method of any of clauses 1 to 5, wherein the positioning measurement is a reference signal time difference (RSTD) measurement or reception-to-transmission (Rx-Tx) time difference measurement.
Clause 7. The method of clause 6, wherein the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement are time of arrival (ToA) measurements, RSTD measurements, Rx-Tx time difference measurements, angle-of-arrival (AoA) measurements, or any combination thereof.
Clause 8. The method of any of clauses 1 to 7, wherein the measurement report is a Long-Term Evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) measurement report.
Clause 9. The method of clause 8, wherein the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement are included in an additional path list information element (IE) in the LPP measurement report.
Clause 10. A method of wireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising: determining an estimated location of a virtual transmission-reception point (TRP) associated with a physical TRP based, at least in part, on one or more times of flight (ToFs) of one or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the physical TRP; and transmitting, to a positioning entity, the estimated location of the virtual TRP.
Clause 11. The method of clause 10, further comprising: determining an uncertainty associated with the estimated location of the virtual TRP; and transmitting the uncertainty to the positioning entity with the estimated location.
Clause 12. The method of any of clauses 10 to 11, wherein the estimated location is transmitted in a location information message for a positioning session with the positioning entity.
Clause 13. The method of clause 12, wherein: the positioning entity is a base station, and the location information message is a radio resource control (RRC) message.
Clause 14. The method of clause 12, wherein: the positioning entity is a location server, and the location information message is a Long-Term Evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) message.
Clause 15. A method of wireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising: receiving assistance data for a positioning session from a positioning entity, the assistance data including a location of at least one physical transmission-reception point (TRP) and a location of at least one virtual TRP associated with the at least one physical TRP, wherein the at least one virtual TRP appears to transmit one or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the at least one physical TRP; and estimating a location of the UE based, at least in part, on the location of the physical TRP, the location of the virtual TRP, measurements of one or more line-of-sight (LOS) multipath components of the one or more RF signals, and the one or more NLOS multipath components of the one or more RF signals.
Clause 16. The method of clause 15, wherein: the assistance data further includes an uncertainty associated with the location of the virtual TRP; and the location of the UE is estimated further based on the uncertainty associated with the location of the virtual TRP.
Clause 17. The method of any of clauses 15 to 16, wherein: the positioning entity is a base station, and the assistance data comprises one or more radio resource control (RRC) message.
Clause 18. The method of any of clauses 15 to 16, wherein: the positioning entity is a location server, and the assistance data comprises one or more Long-Term Evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) messages.
Clause 19. An apparatus comprising a memory, at least one transceiver, and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the memory, the at least one transceiver, and the at least one processor configured to perform a method according to any of clauses 1 to 18.
Clause 20. An apparatus comprising means for performing a method according to any of clauses 1 to 18.
Clause 21. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions, the computer-executable comprising at least one instruction for causing a computer or processor to perform a method according to any of clauses 1 to 18.
Those of skill in the art will appreciate that information and signals may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced throughout the above description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.
Further, those of skill in the art will appreciate that the various illustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm steps described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or combinations of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present disclosure.
The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented or performed with a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, for example, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.
The methods, sequences and/or algorithms described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. A software module may reside in random access memory (RAM), flash memory, read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), registers, hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An example storage medium is coupled to the processor such that the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium may be integral to the processor. The processor and the storage medium may reside in an ASIC. The ASIC may reside in a user terminal (e.g., UE). In the alternative, the processor and the storage medium may reside as discrete components in a user terminal.
In one or more example aspects, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A storage media may be any available media that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable media can comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer. Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of medium. Disk and disc, as used herein, includes compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk and Blu-ray disc where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.
While the foregoing disclosure shows illustrative aspects of the disclosure, it should be noted that various changes and modifications could be made herein without departing from the scope of the disclosure as defined by the appended claims. The functions, steps and/or actions of the method claims in accordance with the aspects of the disclosure described herein need not be performed in any particular order. Furthermore, although elements of the disclosure may be described or claimed in the singular, the plural is contemplated unless limitation to the singular is explicitly stated.
Claims
1. A method of wireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising:
- determining a positioning measurement of a first multipath component of a radio frequency (RF) signal transmitted by a transmission-reception point (TRP);
- determining a first additional positioning measurement of a second multipath component of the RF signal;
- determining a second additional positioning measurement of a third multipath component of the RF signal; and
- transmitting a measurement report to a location server, the measurement report including at least the positioning measurement, the first additional positioning measurement, the second additional positioning measurement, and one or more parameters associated with the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more parameters include:
- a line-of-sight (LOS) parameter indicating whether the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement are based on additional hypothesis of a reception time of an LOS path between the TRP and the UE,
- a first LOS parameter indicating whether the first additional positioning measurement is based on a first hypothesis of the reception time of the LOS path between the TRP and the UE,
- a second LOS parameter indicating whether the second additional positioning measurement is based on a second hypothesis of the reception time of the LOS path between the TRP and the UE, or
- the first LOS parameter and the second LOS parameter.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more parameters include:
- a non-line-of-sight (NLOS) parameter indicating whether the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement are based on NLOS paths between the TRP and the UE,
- a first NLOS parameter indicating whether the first additional positioning measurement is based on a first NLOS path between the TRP and the UE,
- a second NLOS parameter indicating whether the second additional positioning measurement is based on a second NLOS path between the TRP and the UE, or
- the first NLOS parameter and the second NLOS parameter.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more parameters include:
- a signal strength of the second multipath component,
- a signal strength of the third multipath component, or
- the signal strength of the second multipath component and the signal strength of the third multipath component.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more parameters include:
- a path type parameter indicating whether the second multipath component and the third multipath component are believed to be reflected paths, scattered paths, or diffracted paths,
- a first path type parameter indicating whether the second multipath component is believed to be a first reflected path, a first scattered path, or a first diffracted path,
- a second path type parameter indicating whether the third multipath component is believed to be a second reflected path, a second scattered path, or a second diffracted path, or
- the first path type parameter and the second path type parameter.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the positioning measurement is a reference signal time difference (RSTD) measurement or reception-to-transmission (Rx-Tx) time difference measurement.
7. The method of claim 6, wherein the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement are time of arrival (ToA) measurements, RSTD measurements, Rx-Tx time difference measurements, angle-of-arrival (AoA) measurements, or any combination thereof.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein the measurement report is a Long-Term Evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) measurement report.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement are included in an additional path list information element (IE) in the LPP measurement report.
10. A method of wireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising:
- determining an estimated location of a virtual transmission-reception point (TRP) associated with a physical TRP based, at least in part, on one or more times of flight (ToFs) of one or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the physical TRP; and
- transmitting, to a positioning entity, the estimated location of the virtual TRP.
11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:
- determining an uncertainty associated with the estimated location of the virtual TRP; and
- transmitting the uncertainty to the positioning entity with the estimated location.
12. The method of claim 10, wherein the estimated location is transmitted in a location information message for a positioning session with the positioning entity.
13. The method of claim 12, wherein:
- the positioning entity is a base station, and
- the location information message is a radio resource control (RRC) message.
14. The method of claim 12, wherein:
- the positioning entity is a location server, and
- the location information message is a Long-Term Evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) message.
15. A method of wireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising:
- receiving assistance data for a positioning session from a positioning entity, the assistance data including a location of at least one physical transmission-reception point (TRP) and a location of at least one virtual TRP associated with the at least one physical TRP, wherein the at least one virtual TRP appears to transmit one or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the at least one physical TRP; and
- estimating a location of the UE based, at least in part, on the location of the physical TRP, the location of the virtual TRP, measurements of one or more line-of-sight (LOS) multipath components of the one or more RF signals, and the one or more NLOS multipath components of the one or more RF signals.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein:
- the assistance data further includes an uncertainty associated with the location of the virtual TRP; and
- the location of the UE is estimated further based on the uncertainty associated with the location of the virtual TRP.
17. The method of claim 15, wherein:
- the positioning entity is a base station, and
- the assistance data comprises one or more radio resource control (RRC) message.
18. The method of claim 15, wherein:
- the positioning entity is a location server, and
- the assistance data comprises one or more Long-Term Evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) messages.
19. A user equipment (UE), comprising:
- a memory;
- at least one transceiver; and
- at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor configured to: determine a positioning measurement of a first multipath component of a radio frequency (RF) signal transmitted by a transmission-reception point (TRP); determine a first additional positioning measurement of a second multipath component of the RF signal; determine a second additional positioning measurement of a third multipath component of the RF signal; and transmit, via the at least one transceiver, a measurement report to a location server, the measurement report including at least the positioning measurement, the first additional positioning measurement, the second additional positioning measurement, and one or more parameters associated with the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement.
20. The UE of claim 19, wherein the one or more parameters include:
- a line-of-sight (LOS) parameter indicating whether the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement are based on additional hypothesis of a reception time of an LOS path between the TRP and the UE,
- a first LOS parameter indicating whether the first additional positioning measurement is based on a first hypothesis of the reception time of the LOS path between the TRP and the UE,
- a second LOS parameter indicating whether the second additional positioning measurement is based on a second hypothesis of the reception time of the LOS path between the TRP and the UE, or
- the first LOS parameter and the second LOS parameter.
21. The UE of claim 19, wherein the one or more parameters include:
- a non-line-of-sight (NLOS) parameter indicating whether the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement are based on NLOS paths between the TRP and the UE,
- a first NLOS parameter indicating whether the first additional positioning measurement is based on a first NLOS path between the TRP and the UE,
- a second NLOS parameter indicating whether the second additional positioning measurement is based on a second NLOS path between the TRP and the UE, or
- the first NLOS parameter and the second NLOS parameter.
22. The UE of claim 19, wherein the one or more parameters include:
- a signal strength of the second multipath component,
- a signal strength of the third multipath component, or
- the signal strength of the second multipath component and the signal strength of the third multipath component.
23. The UE of claim 19, wherein the one or more parameters include:
- a path type parameter indicating whether the second multipath component and the third multipath component are believed to be reflected paths, scattered paths, or diffracted paths,
- a first path type parameter indicating whether the second multipath component is believed to be a first reflected path, a first scattered path, or a first diffracted path,
- a second path type parameter indicating whether the third multipath component is believed to be a second reflected path, a second scattered path, or a second diffracted path, or
- the first path type parameter and the second path type parameter.
24. The UE of claim 19, wherein the positioning measurement is a reference signal time difference (RSTD) measurement or reception-to-transmission (Rx-Tx) time difference measurement.
25. The UE of claim 24, wherein the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement are time of arrival (ToA) measurements, RSTD measurements, Rx-Tx time difference measurements, angle-of-arrival (AoA) measurements, or any combination thereof.
26. The UE of claim 19, wherein the measurement report is a Long-Term Evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) measurement report.
27. The UE of claim 26, wherein the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement are included in an additional path list information element (IE) in the LPP measurement report.
Type: Application
Filed: Jul 13, 2021
Publication Date: Jan 19, 2023
Patent Grant number: 12052632
Inventors: Roohollah AMIRI (San Diego, CA), Srinivas YERRAMALLI (Hyderabad), Rajat PRAKASH (San Diego, CA), Taesang YOO (San Diego, CA)
Application Number: 17/374,694
